Kelvin
Banks Jr..
Kelvin
Banks Jr..
Texas· 6'5"· 315 lb· 5.16s 40
"A day-one blindside starter whose calm hands and elite balance let him erase edge speed without ever needing to be the biggest or longest man in the phone booth."Pre-draft read
Exclusive left tackle who plays from a balanced two-point stance and mirrors with feet before hands. He covers the arc against speed rushers without over-setting, and redirects quickly on inside counters. When beaten on the first move, he slides his hips back under the rush, rarely surrendering a clean corner. His hands fire in tight, compact pairs and reset well, though he can catch rather than strike against bull rushers.
In the run game, he is a reach-and-seal zone blocker, at his best climbing to second-level linebackers and finishing on the move. He is less of a displacement drive blocker at the point of attack. A distinct separator is his consistent balance, so bad reps typically end as pressures, not sacks.
The New Orleans Saints operate a balanced spread-to-run system with frequent RPOs that prioritize offensive linemen who can execute reach and scoop blocks on the front side.
As an immediate blindside starting left tackle, Banks will provide stability and reliability, with a ceiling to be a perennial Pro Bowl protector.
He would be less impactful in a gap/duo power run system that demands consistent displacement and drive blocking from its offensive tackles.
Banks' three years of starting experience and exceptional balance make him a plug-and-play left tackle, immediately upgrading pass protection for the Saints.
Kelvin Banks Jr College Football Highlights | 2025 NFL Draft Film | Texas Left Tackle
Full-season Texas tape showing pass-set arc, recovery balance and second-level climbs.
Kelvin Banks, Jr. OT-Texas | Bank On It | 2025 NFL Draft
Scouting breakdown of hand timing, anchor questions and run-game fit.
Kelvin Banks Jr. Raw Highlights from Texas
Unedited Texas reps released by the drafting team after the ninth overall pick.
He projects as a three-year blindside starter, a balance-and-anchor left tackle who wins with recovery athleticism. His lateral quickness and consistent body control allow him to ride speed rushers and re-anchor against power, making his worst reps survivable. A team acquiring him receives a plug-and-play left tackle with a high floor and immediate starting equity.
He served three seasons as Texas's starting left tackle, playing against Big 12 and later SEC edge rushers. He started all 43 games of his college career without missing one. His consistent presence on the blindside through scheme changes and a conference move demonstrated high-level production against top competition. His 2024 honors, including the Outland Trophy, Lombardi Award, Jacobs Blocking Trophy, and unanimous All-American, confirmed his elite college performance.
Evaluators noted his 33 1/2-inch arm length as a potential flag, leading some to project him to guard, as long-armed power rushers could sometimes walk him back. However, his ability to recover and maintain balance on film often mitigated these concerns. He was a consensus top tackle on many boards and a lock inside the top 12, ultimately drafted ninth overall.
- 01
Pass-set arc
Reaches the top of the rush arc with efficient, unhurried kick slides, riding wide speed rushers past the pocket rather than getting run around the edge.
- 02
Recovery balance
When his first punch misses, he keeps his feet under him and re-anchors instead of grabbing, turning beaten reps into late pressures rather than clean sacks.
- 03
Snap availability
Started every game of his college career at left tackle, 43 in all, including the 2024 playoff run against SEC and playoff-caliber edge rushers.
- 04
Second-level work
Comfortable climbing on zone concepts, tracking moving linebackers in space and finishing blocks on the run rather than merely getting in their way.
- 05
Competitive temperament
Plays the whole down and through the whistle, with a clean penalty history for a three-year starter and no history of retaliation or discipline issues on tape.
- 01
Arm length
At 33 1/2 inches, he does not out-reach long edge defenders, so he must win the timing battle; late hands allow rushers into his frame and stack him.
- 02
Anchor versus power
Long-levered bull rushers can walk him into the pocket on the first surge; he recovers, but the quarterback's throwing lane narrows before he resets his base.
- 03
Hand strike timing
Tends to catch and absorb rather than strike first, particularly against two-hand power, which delays his ability to control the rusher's chest and dictate the rep.
- 04
Drive blocking
Not a displacement mauler in short yardage situations; he was more of a sealer than a remover at the point of attack in the run game.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 5.16sp50
- Vertical
- 32inp50
- Broad jump
- 104inp50
- Three-cone
- 7.81sp50
- Shuttle
- 4.66sp50
- Bench
- —rep
| Yr | Team | G |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Texas | 13 |
| 2023 | Texas | 14 |
| 2024 | Texas | 16 |
| Career | — | 43 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Honors
- Outland Trophy (2024)
- Lombardi Award (2024)
- Jacobs Blocking Trophy (2024)
- Unanimous All-American (2024)
- First-team All-SEC (2024)
- Second-team All-American (2023)
- First-team All-Big 12 (2023)
- Second-team All-Big 12 (2022)
A dependable, athletic blindside starter who is excellent in zone and reliable in protection without being a road grader.
Same profile of a shorter-armed tackle who survives and thrives on footwork, balance and timing rather than reach.
The outcome if the anchor never firms up: a talented college tackle whose length forces a move inside and a role-player career.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Rookie year complete: 17 starts at left tackle for the Saints in 2025, five sacks allowed on 681 pass-blocking snaps and a PFWA All-Rookie selection.
Texas handed Kelvin Banks Jr. the blindside in August of his true freshman year and never took it back. That is the single most important fact of his evaluation, and it framed everything that followed: 43 starts, three head-coaching seasons of scheme change around him, a conference move from the Big 12 to the SEC, and two College Football Playoff semifinal runs in which the best edge rushers available lined up across from him. The 2024 hardware — Outland, Lombardi, Jacobs Blocking Trophy, unanimous All-American — read less like a coronation than a confirmation of what the tape had shown since 2022. He was the rare college tackle whose worst reps were survivable, because the thing he did best was stay upright and keep working.
The argument against him was always about measurements rather than production. At 33 1/2-inch arms he was shorter of reach than the archetype, and evaluators who project length first wanted to slide him to guard, where a narrower operating space would forgive a late punch. Those evaluators were not describing an imaginary flaw; long-armed power rushers did get into his frame and walk him backward, and he was a sealer rather than a remover in a Texas run game that was stuffed on nearly a fifth of its carries in 2024. But the counterargument won, and it won on film. Banks recovered from those reps. He kept his hips underneath him, re-anchored late and turned potential disasters into hurried throws.
New Orleans made him the ninth pick and put him at left tackle immediately, which is the clearest verdict any team can render. He started all 17 games as a rookie in 2025, allowed five sacks across 681 pass-blocking snaps, drew only three accepted penalties and finished on the PFWA All-Rookie Team. One season proves durability and competence, not stardom; the anchor question will keep getting asked every time a 290-pound power rusher tests it. But the floor he showed as a rookie is the floor the tape promised, and that is not a small thing for a top-ten offensive lineman.